Which proposal for the former Schaeffer School in Camp Hill makes the most sense to you?

In the coming months, it will be up to the Camp Hill School Board to decide which plan makes the most sense for the former Schaeffer Elementary School.

Three different proposals were submitted earlier this month for the vacant Shaeffer Elementary School. The school closed in June of 2011. MARK PYNES, Pennlive.com

Three proposals for the school property were submitted to the board earlier this month. The school district posted them on its website and below are the highlights of each proposal:

The Camp Hill Arts and Learning Center

The proposal submitted by David Reager and Craig Bachik calls for turning the former Schaeffer School into a new regional visual arts center called “The Camp Hill Arts and Learning Center.”

They propose buying the school for $1. The property would essentially be transferred over to Reager and Bachik, members of the non-profit Camp Hill Economic Development Group, and a CHEDC advisory group that would oversee the project.

The main selling point is that the new visual arts center would continue to be an asset to the borough by holding art exhibitions and cultural programming. Programs will target children and teenagers, according to the proposal.

The new project, which would not require a rezoning, is expected to cost $1.9 million and includes a complete restoration of the building and its property. The work will be completed in a $1.2 million Phase 1 and a $688,000 Phase 2, according to estimates.

The money for the project will mostly be raised through fundraising, according to the proposal. A chart labeled “initial fundraising” said $500,000 would be obtained in grants, $360,000 would come through corporate sponsors and another $480,000 would come from individual sponsors.

The developers also would take out a loan for an additional $600,000. This money will allow for the development of programs and cash reserves to cover operational expenses, the proposal said.

It is estimated the center’s annual operating expenses will be $126,000. The center would cover about 76 percent of its expenses by leasing the venue and holding events there, according to the proposal.

Reager is a lifelong resident of the borough and an attorney. The proposal said he is an active developer and has ownership in three residential developments.

Bachik is a principal of Kairos Design Group, LLC, a landscape architectural design firm in the borough. He has experience in the public and private sector, according to the proposal.

The proposal asks the district transfer ownership of the Schaeffer School on Jan. 31 of 2014 so that it will have enough time for fundraising. Open space on the school property is also going to remain untouched.

The Myers Group Plan A

Barclay Fitzpatrick was one borough resident who questioned a proposal that would turn the former Schaeffer Elementary School into condominiums. Fitzpatrick argued the proposal may be illegal because it contains provisions for deed restrictions that would limit purchases to one owner who is a minimum of 50 years old.JUSTIN A. SHAW/The Patriot-News

The first proposal submitted by Bob Myers and Hugh Simpson calls for an “adaptive reuse” of the Schaeffer School. They suggest turning the school into 11 condominiums for “empty nesters,” who would be a minimum of 50 years old.

The proposal says Myers and Myers Properties and Real Source Advisors would buy the school and its existing parking area for $250,000 — assuming a rezoning of the property is approved.

From an outside perspective, the building would appear much as it does now, according to the proposal. The courtyard would be redone and other parts of the building would be renovated. Open space would be preserved on the property.

The condominiums would likely be two-bedroom units, with two baths and an open floor plan kitchen. Several common areas in the building will also be re-purposed.

As previously mentioned, this plan would require a change in zoning of the property. Myers and Simpson argue that the condominiums would be consistent with the makeup of the neighborhood because there are other apartment properties near the school.

Moreover, they argue that school boards and municipalities across the country are having similar conversations about how to reuse old schools. They called the process “natural” and part of an adjustment to budget and demographic changes.

It should be noted that a group of residents has questioned the validity of the proposal because it contains provisions for deed restrictions that would limit ownership to one owner, per unit, who is 50 years of age or older. They argued this could be illegal.

Myers Group Plan B

The second proposal submitted by Myers and Simpson is clearly pitched as a “Plan B” to their condominium plan.

The proposal said they will purchase the school for $100,000 and demolish it, turning the space into several single-family lots. The project would preserve open space on the property.

The proposal — and the condominium plan — said Myers has run the “highly successful” Wood, Myers and Hartman Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery practice for 15 years and has invested in other real estate projects.

The proposal said he also re-purposed a double house into Café 101 on Front Street in Boiling Spring. He partnered with Simpson on this project, which the pair said was the “springboard” for them to propose the renovation of Schaeffer.

Simpson has been in the real estate business for more than 20 years, according to the proposal.

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